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"School: It's like riding a bike." (68/365)

Yesterday, we welcomed back staff.


After a long and relaxing summer (which was also a quick and frenetic summer), we were scheduled to address staff with words of meaning, words of inspiration.


Driving to work that morning with butterflies in my stomach, I was unsure of what those words were to going sound like...and they were to come out of my mouth.


At least, that is, until I set foot in the school and my nerves settled a bit.


Thinking back on last school year, I'd remembered a video clip that was shared by one of my favorite and often most challenging students. I'd written about that experience here. He loved this particular channel, Smarter Every Day.


One particular episode he'd told me about involved a bike.


A backwards bike.


Watch the video and you will see what I mean.



This is what I would go on to share and talk about with our teachers on our first day back.


Why did this video clip stand out in my mind?


Well, if I had to explain to someone, how it felt to be an educator over the last two school years, this idea of learning to ride a backwards bike would be it.


There would be learning.


There would be unlearning.


And there will be relearning.


And it will continue.


Like the gears of the bike, the spinning wheels, the learning flywheel will continue.


The questions that continues to marinate for me, 24 hours later, are:


  • How is the riding the backwards bike like teaching in 2021-22?

  • How is the riding the backwards bike like learning in 2021-22?


Let's learn, unlearn, and relearn together in 2021-22.


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